Arsenic water safety breakthrough

Scientists at Rice University in Texas say that particles of iron oxide can bind themselves to large amounts of arsenic in water. When mixed into contaminated water, the tiny crystals became coated with the poison and began behaving like iron filings.

When a strong magnet is placed above the particles, they clump together and are simple to remove.

If confirmed it could help nearly 60 million people in Bangladesh who drink water with dangerous arsenic levels.

The researchers from Rice University’s Centre for Biological and Environmental Nanotechnology report their work in the journal Science.